America’s Most Overlooked Veterans Finally Got Recognition at This Arlington Memorial

Military Women’s Memorial (Arlington, Virginia)

Women have served in every American war since the Revolution. You wouldn’t know it from most war memorials.

But walk through Arlington’s main gate and you’ll find their stories carved in granite and glass.

Here’s the story behind Arlington’s most overlooked tribute.

The Hemicycle’s Transformation

The memorial uses a structure called the Hemicycle, built in 1932 as Arlington Cemetery’s main gate.

But the Hemicycle never served its purpose. It sat empty and crumbling for over 50 years. In 1985, Congress chose this structure as the perfect site for honoring military women.

Brigadier General Wilma Vaught’s Vision

One woman made this memorial happen. Wilma Vaught was born March 15, 1930, in Pontiac, Illinois, and grew up on a farm in rural Scotland, Illinois. She joined the Air Force in 1957.

Vaught broke barriers throughout her career. She worked as a management analyst in Vietnam and became the first woman to deploy with an Air Force bomber unit.

After retiring, she spent 29 years raising over $20 million to build this memorial. President Biden awarded her the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2022.

Weiss/Manfredi’s Award-Winning Design

In 1989, over 130 architects entered a contest to design the memorial, which New York architects Marion Weiss and Michael Manfredi won.

Michael’s mother had been a World War II Army nurse, which influenced their approach.

They kept the Hemicycle’s historic stone exterior but created modern spaces inside to tell women’s stories. Construction began in June 1995.

The finished memorial won multiple awards, including the 1999 WBC Craftsmanship Awards for stonework and design.

The Court of Valor

Visitors first see the Court of Valor, a plaza with a reflecting pool and 200-jet fountain. The fountain’s water sounds represent women’s voices throughout history.

The court sits on the historic line connecting the Lincoln Memorial to Arlington House. This line symbolically joined North and South after the Civil War. Stone pavers mark this path from Memorial Bridge through the plaza.

The Memorial Register

The heart of the memorial is the Register, a computer database of women’s military service. Anyone can use it for free to search for women who served or add their own stories.

The Register currently holds information on about 315,000 women. But this is only 10% of the three million who have served since 1776.

In 2021, the memorial started a campaign to collect more stories. Each entry includes photos, service details, and personal memories that might otherwise be lost forever.

Hall of Honor

The Hall of Honor remembers women who paid the ultimate price. It honors those killed in action, who died while serving, and who were prisoners of war.

The hall also recognizes women who earned the nation’s highest awards for courage and service.

Photos, uniforms, and personal items tell their individual stories. These displays show that women have faced danger in every American conflict, often without recognition until years later.

Revolutionary War to Civil War Service

Women served from America’s beginning. One of the legendary stories you’ll learn at the memorial is about Deborah Samson who dressed as a man to fight in the Revolutionary War in 1782.

Another is of Cathay Williams who enlisted as “William Cathay” in 1866, becoming the first Black woman in the U.S. Army and the only known female Buffalo Soldier.

Recent Exhibit Expansions

In August 2024, it opened “A Sea Change: Women on Combatant Ships.” This exhibit tells how women fought for 30 years to serve on Navy combat ships after the 1948 law banned them.

New displays also honor the “Six Triple Eight,” the only all-Black female unit deployed overseas in World War II. They sorted millions of pieces of backlogged mail for U.S. troops in Europe.

The Daughters of the American Revolution donated $1 million in March 2024 to fund these gallery updates.

Visiting Military Women’s Memorial

Located at the main entrance to Arlington National Cemetery, the Military Women’s Memorial welcomes visitors daily. The education center features interactive exhibits, historical displays, and a gift shop selling military women-themed items.

From the upper terrace, visitors enjoy sweeping views of Memorial Bridge, the Potomac River, and the National Mall. Glass panels in the terrace show quotes from servicewomen across generations.

The museum remains free to visit.

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